few

Few and a few are both used in front of nouns, but they do not have the same meaning. You use a few simply to show that you are talking about a small number of people or things.

I'm having a dinner party for a few close friends.

Here are a few ideas that might help you.

When you use few without 'a', you are emphasizing that there are only a small number of people or things of a particular kind. So, for example, if you say 'I have a few friends', you are simply saying that you have some friends. However, if you say 'I have few friends', you are saying that you do not have enough friends and are lonely.

Doctors work an average of 90 hours a week, while a few work up to 120 hours.

Many were invited but few came.

3. 'not many'

In conversation and in less formal writing, people don't usually use few without 'a'. Instead they use not many. For example, instead of saying 'I have few friends', people usually say 'I haven't got many friends' or 'I don't have many friends'.

They haven't got many books.

I don't have many visitors.

Be Careful!Don't use 'few' or 'a few' when you are talking about a small amount of something. Don't say, for example, 'Would you like a few more milk in your tea?' You say 'Would you like a little more milk in your tea?'

few - a small elite group; "it was designed for the discriminating few"

elite, elite group - a group or class of persons enjoying superior intellectual or social or economic status

Adj.

1.

few - a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by `a'; a small but indefinite number; "a few weeks ago"; "a few more wagons than usual"; "an invalid's pleasures are few and far between"; "few roses were still blooming"; "few women have led troops in battle"

fewer - (comparative of `few' used with count nouns) quantifier meaning a smaller number of; "fewer birds came this year"; "the birds are fewer this year"; "fewer trains were late"

some - quantifier; used with either mass nouns or plural count nouns to indicate an unspecified number or quantity; "have some milk"; "some roses were still blooming"; "having some friends over"; "some apples"; "some paper"

many - a quantifier that can be used with count nouns and is often preceded by `as' or `too' or `so' or `that'; amounting to a large but indefinite number; "many temptations"; "the temptations are many"; "a good many"; "a great many"; "many directions"; "take as many apples as you like"; "too many clouds to see"; "never saw so many people"

few

[fjuː]ADJ & PRON (fewer (compar) (fewest (superl)))

1. (= not many) → pocos/asfew books → pocos librosfew of them → pocos (de ellos)only a few → sólounos pocosonly a few of them came → sólovinieronunos pocosthere are very few of us; we are very few → somos muy pocosfew (people) managed to do it → muy pocos consiguieron hacerlothe few who → los pocos que ...she is one of the few (people) who → ella es una de los pocos que ...such men are few → hay pocos hombres asías few as three of them → nada más que tresevery few weeks → cada dos o tres semanaswith few exceptions → con pocas excepcionesthey are few and far between → son contadosthe lucky few → unos pocosor unos cuantos afortunadosin or over the next few days → en or durante los próximosdías, en estos días (LAm)in or over the past few days → en or durante los últimosdíasthe last orremaining few minutes → el poco tiempo que queda/quedabatoo few → demasiado pocosthere were three too few → faltaban tres

few

adj (+er)

(= not many) → wenige; few people come to see him → nur wenige Leutebesuchen ihn; with few exceptions → mit wenigen Ausnahmen; we are very few → wir sind nur sehr wenige or nur ein kleinesHäufchen; few and far between → dünngesät; as few as ten cigarettes a day can be harmful → schon orbereits zehn Zigaretten am Tag können schädlich sein; as few as six objections → bloß sechs Einwände, nichtmehr als sechs Einwände; how few they are! → wie wenige das sind!; so few books → so wenige Bücher; too few cakes → zu wenige Kuchen; there were 3 too few → es waren 3 zu wenig da; 10 would not be too few → 10 wären nicht zu wenig; he is one of the few people who … → er ist einer der wenigen, die …; the exceptions are few → es gibt nur wenige Ausnahmen; such occasions are few → solche Gelegenheiten sind seltenorrar

(= not many) → wenige; few of them came → wenige von ihnen kamen; some few → gar nicht so wenige; the FewKampfflieger, die an der Luftschlacht um England im zweiten Weltkrieg teilnahmen; the lucky few → die wenigen Glücklichen; opera used to be an experience for the few → Opern waren früher einer privilegiertenMinderheitvorbehalten; as few as you → genauso wenig wie du; how few there are! → wie wenige das sind!; however few there may be → wie wenig auch immer da ist; I’ve got so/too few as it is → ich habe sowieso schon so/zu wenig(e); so few have been sold → so wenige sind bis jetztverkauftworden; there are too few of you → ihr seid zu wenige

few

[fjuː]adj (-er (comp) (-est (superl))) pron

a. (not many) → pochi/efew books → pochi librifew of them → pochi di lorofew (people) managed to do it → pochi riuscirono a farlofew succeed → pochi ci riesconoshe is one of the few (people) who ... → è una delle poche persone che...the few who ... → i pochi che...in or over the past few days → in questi ultimigiorni, negli ultimigiorniin or over the next few days → nei prossimigiornievery few days/months → ogni due o tre giorni/mesiwith few exceptions → con or salvo poche eccezionievery few weeks → a intervalli di qualche settimanathey are few and far between → sono rarithere are very few of us or we are very few → siamo pochithe last or remaining few minutes → i pochi minuti che rimangonoas few as three of them → solo tre di lorotoo few → troppo pochithere were three too few → ne mancavano tre

b. (some, several) a few → alcuni/e, qualchea few books → alcuni libri, qualche libroI know a few → ne conosco alcunia few of them → alcuni di loroa few more days → qualche altro giornoin a few more days → fra qualche giornoa good few or quite a few → parecchia good few or quite a few books → parecchi libri, un bel po' di libria good few or quite a few (people) came → parecchie persone sono venute

If, by any extraordinary chance, there was no war going, then they got up a deadly family feud with the next-door neighbor, and if, in spite of this, they still had a few spare moments on their hands, they occupied them with discussions as to whose sweetheart was the best looking, the arguments employed on both sides being battle-axes, clubs, etc.

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